Jazmin Cunningham, 22, of Fullerton, was the first in line outside Disney California Adventure.

More than 2,000 fans line up outside the entrance to Disney California Adventure early Friday. More than 500 fans arrived before midnight and spent the night in anticipation -- especially of the opening of Cars Land. As visitors wiped away the sleep, they said they couldn't wait to get a first look at the $1 billion makeover.

Froyland Mendez, 32, lies in the lap of his girlfriend, Claudia Brambila, 30, both of San Diego. The arrived outside Disney California Adventure at 4:30 a.m. and tried to catch some sleep before the park opened at 9 a.m. They said they couldn't -- they were too excited.

Rudy Baez, Jr., 35, of Santa Ana, sports his Cars Land mouse ears as he waits in line with his wife, sister-in-law and other familiy members. "I can't wait to see it all," Baez said. "It makes you feel like a 10-year-old kid all over again."

Randy Whetstone, 2, of Tracy, holds his 2-year-old son, Ethan, as they wait in line outside Disneyland California Adventure. Ethan loves the "Cars" movies and dressed up in a "Cars 2" outfit to celebrate the occassion. When asked who his favorite character is, Ethan shot back "McQueen" for the movie's main character, Lighting McQueen.

Carlos Mendez, Jr., 24, of Riverside, holds his son, Carlos Mendez III, 4, in the line outside Disney California Adventure on Friday morning. They arrived at 6:30 a.m. and wanted to be among the first in Cars Land. Mendez said he wanted his son to be part of history. "He's over 40 inches tall, so he can ride all the rides," he said, proudly.

Some fans camped in front of California Adventure in anticipation of the opening of Cars Land. More than 500 fans had arrived before midnight to be among the first in line.

Some children near the front of the line outside Disney California Adventure catch a short nap before the gates to the new Cars Land are set to open at 9 a.m. Friday. More than 2,000 fans lined up by 6 a.m.

Fans waiting outside Disney California Adventure say they dressed for comfort knowing they'd have to wait in line for hours, then planned to spend hours seeing the $1 billion makeover, including the new Cars Land and reinvented Buena Vista Street.

By 11:30 p.m. Thursday, about 500 people already had a place in line outside Disney California Adventure.

Mobile devices such as tablets were among the gadgets that people brought for camping out for the general public debut of the new attractions at Disney California Adventure.

Nicco Ramos, 22, of Anaheim and his girlfriend, Jazmin Cunningham, 22 of Fullerton share a love of all things Disney, and were the first pair in line for the unveiling of Disney California Adventure's makeover to the general public.

Alfred Perkins, 23, of Los Angeles, arrived with five relatives to see the new Cars Land at Disney California Adventure.

Tilysa Johnson, 4 gets a wristband before she goes to sleep as she and her family camp out overnight outside Disney California Adventure.

Members of three families - the Toghias of Costa Mesa, Moores of Fresno and Burgesses of Atascadero - rest in their designated spot at Disney California Adventure after waiting for hours in a remote parking lot.

Three families - the Toghias from Costa Mesa, the Moores from Fresno and the Burgesses from Atascadero - have been friends for years and decided to make waiting for Cars Land a fun group event.

Dontel Sanders, 12, in red, and his young relatives try to get some sleep despite the bright lights while waiting for the reopening of Disney California Adventure.

Matt Redman, 28, of Huntington Beach (left) and John Schwendinger, 25, of Garden Grove were the second group of people in line. They had seen Cars Land in a Disneyland Resort cast member preview but returned to see Buena Vista Street at Disney California Adventure.

The new entrance to Disney California Adventure, modeled after the historic Pan Pacific Auditorium in Los Angeles, glows the night before its general public debut.

'Twas the night before Disney California Adventure's big day and little girls such as this one took a peek past the theme park's gates, to see what the next day might hold for them.

About 7 a.m., Disney employees were still putting finishing touches on the new Cars Land. Here an employee takes the covering off of a sign at an entrance of Radiator Springs Racers, one of three new rides inside Cars Land.

ANAHEIM – They came from as far as Fresno and Atascadero. And from as near as a short stroll away, from Anaheim.

By 6 a.m. Friday, more than 2,000 people crowded into a mass of zigzagging lines in the esplanade outside of Disney California Adventure for the grand unveiling of the theme park’s $1 billion makeover, the first time the public gets to see some big, new stuff, most notably Cars Land and Buena Vista Street.

Some who’d been there all night wiped sleep from their eyes, then cheered wildly as television news pointed cameras at them.

Many had arrived earlier in the afternoon Thursday but were ushered by Disneyland Resort security staffers to a parking lot that served as a waiting area until the theme parks closed for the evening.

More than 500 people spent the night, wanting to be among the first to rush through the gates when they opened at 9 a.m.

For many, including Jazmin Cunningham, 22, of Fullerton and her boyfriend, Nicco Ramos, who were first in line, the point of getting here as early as 3 p.m. – 18 hours before the park’s opening time – was simple: Cars Land, the much-touted new land at the theme park.

“I love Disneyland,” Cunningham said. “I’ve seen pictures of Cars Land, but I can’t wait to see it in person.”

Her first stop: a ride called Radiator Springs Racers. And after that, the other two rides in Cars Land.

Several feet away was a group of three families who met five years ago on a Disney fan website. They decided recently that going together to the event would be great fun.

Ken Toghia, 43, of Costa Mesa and his family were joined by the Burgess family from Atascadero, and the Moore family from Fresno. All together, there were 13 people – seven children ages 2 to 15 and six grownups.

“My brother and I were here for the opening of California Adventure more than 10 years ago,” Toghia said. “A day after it opened, there were not a lot of people in there. It was kind of dead.”

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